Car coupler



June 23, 1925. 1,543,459

1 P. B. CAMP CAR COUPLER Filed July 19, 1924 I 7) o ,6 )J Wkg/ I Ulmyeyz 602 Farce ,5. Calm i Patented June 23, 1925.

., j I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PERCY B. carer, or HAYWOOD; ILLINOIS; AssIoNoR TorirtrvER'sAL DRAFT GEARATTACHMENT COMPANY, A CORPORATION or TLLINQIS.

CAR COUILER.

Application filed July 19, 1924. Serial No. 726,913.

To all whom itmag concern:

Be it known that I, PnRoY B. CAMP, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Maywood, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Car Couplers, of whichthe following is a specification, and which are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

This invention relates to car coupling devices and has for its principalobjects to provide a connection between the locking pin and theoperating lever that can be readily applied to existing cars as well asto new cars; that will endure the stresses and strains of use and abuse,and that will accommodate itself to all the necessary movements betweenthe coupler head and the operating lever. Further objects and advantagesof the invention will become apparent as the disclosure proceeds and thedescription is read in connection with the accompanying drawingsillustrating a selected embodiment of the invention and in which F ig. 1is an end elevation of a fragment of a car with the invention appliedthereto;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a similar fragment of a car;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a link made according to the inventionbefore it is assembled with the other parts, and

Fig. 4 is a similar perspective view of a' link assembled with fragmentsof the operating lever and the locking pin.

Coupling devices usually include a looking pin such as that shown at 10,slidably mounted'in a coupler head 11 carried by the draw bar 12suitably connected with the car 18. An operating lever 14: is rotatablymounted in bearings 15, has a hand arm 16 and a lifting arm 17, thelatter being equipped at its end with an eye 18 located above the eye 19of the locking pin 10.

According to the present invention the arm 17 and the pin 10 areconnected by a link 20 looped through the eyes 18 and 19. Preferablythis link is constructed as shown in Fig. 3, comprising a rod having asubstantially straight portion 21 reversely bent at 22 and 23. Below thebend 22 one end portion of the rod is formed into an eye 24 and abovethe bend 23 the other end portion is inclined laterally, as indicated at25 and provided with an eye-forming bend, or member, 26, lying inposition to extend through the eye 24 when the portion 25 is movedto'the dotted line position, shown in Fig. 3.

In assembling, the eye-forming member 26 is first threaded through theeye 18, then through the eye 19 and then the part 25 is forced to takethe dotted line position in F 1g. 3 after which the eye-forming member26 is bent to the form shown at 27 in Fig. 4. By proceeding in thismanner an extremely strong and serviceable connectionis made between theoperating lever and the locking pin. The strains developed by jerking onthe hand lever 16 are resisted first by the reverse bends 22 and 23, andonly stresses produced after these bends yield are brought to bear uponthe interlocking eyes by which the link 20 is closed. At the same timethe link is very readily assembled with the operating arm and thelocking pin, and will permit all the necessary movements between the twoin the operation of a train. In some coupling devices the eye 18 lies ina vertical plane, but it can be easily brought to the horizontal planeby twisting the arm 17 and hence the invention is easily applied tothose coupling devices also.

The link may take Various forms in compliance with individualpreference, but it will always be of advantage to make use of theinclined portion 25 to place the eyeforming member 26 in position toengage the eye 24:, for in this way the ends of the link are broughttogether by an easy twisting movement in the region of the bend 23.

Use has been made of specific description and illustration in order todisclose the inv vention. but it is intended that nothing containedherein shall unnecessarily limit the following claims, or require aconstruction thereof that would permit the substance of the invention tobe used without infringement.

I claim as my invention 1. In a device of the class described, acoupler, a locking pin having an eye at its upper end, an operatinglever including a crank arm having an eye located above the eye of thelocking pin, and a rod looped through said eyes and having interlockingreverse bends at its ends.

2. As an article of manufacture, a link for car uncoupling mechanismcomprising an open loop formed from a single piece of material having aneye member at one end" and provided at its other end with an eye cludesforming an elongated link Open at forming member arranged laterally Withreone side and provided With a closed and an 10 spect to said eye memberwhereby, When the Open eye, threading the link through the ends of said100p are bent to occupy subeye of the pin and the lever, engaging thestantially the same plane, said members Will open eye with the closedeye and forcing it inter-engage. closed.

3. The process of connecting locking pins and operating levers ofcouplers Which in- PERCY B. CAMP.

